


Casual Affair

by back2beesness



Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Again, FUCk i may have a problem, M/M, and captain, and neil yelling at reporters, basically neil and andrew pretend that they'd having a fling for a while, because FUCK misogyny in sports, before their team finds out the truth, can i spell?, cool coach, fake exy teams because we don't know any of the real ones, i like writing andrew what can i say, i might have fucked with canon a bit, it's too late for me to care, maybe not, neil and andrew come out to the team, or a lot, pro neil and andrew, someone barging in on them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-30
Updated: 2020-07-30
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:42:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25603768
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/back2beesness/pseuds/back2beesness
Summary: Neil and Andrew decide to pretend to be casually hooking up so that their team won't make them come out to the press. It goes about as well as you'd expect.
Relationships: Neil Josten/Andrew Minyard
Comments: 13
Kudos: 396





	Casual Affair

**Author's Note:**

> Did I write Neil going off at reporters again? Maybe. Is there more andreil in this? Also yes. This popped into my head and I wrote it in under an hour in the middle of the night. I have been blessed by the gods.

Of all the people on the team that could have found out first, Neil wouldn’t have chosen Warner. Jake Warner was a sub for the Phoenix Coyotes, and Neil could honestly say he didn’t really know much about the man. He was young, unmarried, and generally not one of the most talented players Neil had ever met. He was reliable, but not particularly gifted, or notable for that matter, so Neil pretty much steered clear of him, even at practice. 

He and Andrew had been working for years to end up on the same team, so he was trying not to have any serious problems with his new teammates. He’d transferred last season, since Andrew had told him that Coach Jackson was tolerable and Kevin had made it pretty clear that Neil might be able to “do something” there. So he’d made the transfer as soon as possible and moved into Andrew’s fairly spacious apartment in Phoenix. 

Let it be said that Minyards are not cold weather creatures. Aaron and Katelyn had ended up in Houston for work, and he had noticed that the amount of complaints about the weather from both twins had decreased significantly in the interim. Not to mention whenever they travelled north to play Kevin in Chicago, Andrew’s glare might as well have been trying to melt the piles of snow around them. Neil picked up on this early and tried to have extra jackets on hand for those trips, help which Andrew would usually reject but given the average temperature, seemed to begrudgingly accept.

So altogether, they’d been making things work. Neil moved his jogs to the evenings and avoided the heat for the most part after learning the hard way how brutal the Arizona sun could be. After quite a few cold baths and bottles of aloe vera, he finally gave in and rearranged his schedule. Not to mention after getting some pretty serious burns, anytime he would reach out to Andrew, he’d respond by pressing a single finger into the inflamed skin on Neil’s shoulders and he’d be forced to step back wincing. Wasn’t worth it at all.

The whole Warner situation had stuck a wrench in things. It had been a pretty normal day and he was getting changed after practice. The locker rooms were nice enough to have individual stalled showers, another selling point Andrew had casually pointed out to Neil about the Coyotes, and so Neil usually hopped in immediately after practice. That night, however, he’d stayed after for a few minutes to discuss something with Julia, their captain, before she headed to the women’s locker rooms, and so found himself the last one changing out. By the time he finished showering, he saw the locker room empty except for Andrew, who was waiting impatiently on the bench, swinging a foot beneath him. He glanced up at Neil’s entrance, who threw off the towel he had slung over his back and shoulders to somewhat hide his scars, leaving him in just his underwear, absentmindedly reaching back to massage a tight muscle by his shoulder.

After a second, Andrew got up, grumbling, to do it himself, kneading Neil’s shoulder under his less than tender hands. Neil moaned nonetheless, leaning his forehead against the lockers.

Once he stopped, Neil turned back around, pressing against the cold metal behind him. He grinned.

“If that’s what I get, maybe I should get injured more often.”

Andrew looked unimpressed, but stepped closer, crowding Neil back between his legs.

“You get injured enough.”

“Enough? Not too much? You wound me.” He placed a dramatic hand against his forehead. “Whatever will I do without you lavishing care and attention on me.”

Andrew pushed his hand away, placing his own on the side of Neil’s face, catching his lower lip lightly between his teeth.

Neil leaned forward, to which Andrew took a step back.

“I’m sure you’ll think of something.”

Neil gave him a similarly unimpressed look, thumping his head back against the lockers and looking at Andrew through heavily lidded eyes.

“I’m sure I will.”

Andrew gave him a firm kiss, before leaning further into it as Neil grabbed the strap of the bag thrown across his shoulder. He was just opening his mouth, deepening the kiss as they heard a door slam open to their left.

Warner was standing, shellshocked, clutching a hoodie in his hand.

“I, uh, I forgot my...you know what? I don’t need it. I’ll get it later,” he said, bumping into the door as he tried to make a hasty retreat, “It’s fine. I don’t really need a phone. See you. Bye!” He practically sprinted towards the exit.

“Fuck.” Neil turned away from the door, back to Andrew, who looked like he was debating chasing after their teammate. Neil grabbed his sleeve. He didn’t care much about the guy but the last thing they needed at the end of a long day was a homicide investigation. “Let him go. It was bound to happen eventually.”

Andrew raised a single eyebrow. “Really? A teammate was bound to walk in on us with our tongues in each other's mouths in the locker room?”

Neil shrugged, giving a roguish grin. “Well, I wasn’t planning on stopping anytime soon, so yeah, I guess they were.”

Andrew rolled his eyes. “Car. Let’s go home.” He stalked towards the exit, before adding offhandedly, “Where there are locks.”

Neil’s grin widened.

________

If Neil had known more about Warner, he might’ve known that he’d been trying to make the starting lineup for years. He also might’ve known that Warner was a bit of a narc, and wasn’t above a bit of tattling if it meant he might be bumped up the line. Then he might not have been so blindsided by Coach Jackson pulling Andrew into her office after practice the next.

Neil shot him a panicked look, which Andrew returned with a passive wave. Unfortunately for Warner, Jackson had known about Andrew’s sexuality since he signed with the team two years ago, so only Neil would be a surprise. Plus, she certainly wasn’t one to punish him for it, if that’s what Jake had been hoping for. Andrew didn’t make a habit of telling all his coaches about his preferences, but soon after he signed, he had a feeling he might end up staying with the Coyotes for a while. His last team had been more of a temporary situation while he became situated in the league, and he knew there was a chance that with Neil coming to visit as often as he could, something might get out in the press. So he told her right away. It didn’t hurt that she was one of two female coaches in professional exy, and that she was known for treating her players well. He’d rather tell her than some random middle aged guy in charge of his entire future and salary. Wymack excluded.

So as Andrew followed Jackson into her office, he wasn’t particularly phased. She shouldn’t have anything to say to him about his sexuality, so it was really just a matter of explaining the Neil situation. But he figured he’d let her tell him what she had heard. For all he knew, she was about to offer him a pay raise.

She sat down, gesturing for him to do the same before looking directly at him. “So. Josten.”

Speaking of pipedreams.

He said nothing.

Johnson sighed deeply, leaning forward slightly over her oak desk. “Okay, listen Minyard. I get that you’re young and single and whatever. But seriously, you couldn’t have found someone to hook up with who wasn’t also being watched like a hawk by the media? Whose career is also intrinsically tied to the success of the team I’m desperately trying to bring to the championships this year?”

Andrew raised an eyebrow.

“Fine. Okay, I get it.” She massaged a spot on her temple. “Here’s the deal. I see no point in outing either of you to the press for a fling that might blow over long before any abuse from the public would. So as long as you two are just messing around, we’re not going to do anything about it. No announcements or statements or anything. Same deal we made when you came out the first time. We won’t make a big deal about hookups, only serious partners. Alright?”

She got a vague nod in response.

“Jesus. I guess that’s as close to an agreement as I’m going to get from you. And pass this all on to Josten, would you? I don’t particularly feel like having this pleasant conversation twice. I chose you instead of him because I figured you’d talk back less. Dismissed.” She leaned back, drumming her fingers on her desk.

Andrew swung himself out of his chair, heading for the office door.

“And Minyard?”

He stopped, turning his head.

“For God’s sake, don’t go fucking up the whole dynamic of the team with a messy breakup, alright?”

He just turned his back on her, casually throwing over his shoulder, “Aye-aye Coach.”

________

Neil probably would have found it hilarious if it didn’t bother him so much.

He paced across their apartment floor. “She seriously just assumed that we were having a fling? Like, didn’t even ask?”

Andrew leaned his head over the back of the couch where he was sitting. “That’s what I said.”

“I mean, for fuck’s sake! I like her, I really do, but this is some bullshit. It’s not like you have a history of just casually hooking up with people.”

Andrew gave him a dubious look.

Neil rolled his eyes. “I meant during your time on the team. Or that anyone would know about, for that matter. I can’t wait to see the look on her face when we straighten all of this out. So to speak.”

“Or we could wait.”

Neil frowned. “What do you mean, wait?”

“Not tell them.”

“The press or the team?”

“Either. I told you, she said she wouldn’t have the team do anything about casual hookups. So we let her think we’re casually hooking up, and she leaves us alone. Problem solved.”

Neil opened his mouth, shutting it quickly. “I guess we could. If that’s what you want.” His frown grew.

“What is it.”

“Nothing.”

He caught a flash of a half-hearted glare.

Neil let out a sigh. “Fine, I just...It’s fine if you want to keep this between us forever. If you’re, I don’t know, ashamed of me or whatever. I get it, I really do.”

Andrew grabbed his wrist as he passed again, pulling him none too lightly onto the couch. He turned to face Neil, feet pulled up under him on the cushion.

“Listen to me. I’m only going to say this once. If I was ashamed of you we would not be doing this. I don’t do anything I don’t want to.”

“Yeah, and you don’t want people to know about us.”

Andrew grabbed his chin. “Because people are annoying. They will ask invasive questions and make our daily lives miserable and won’t leave us alone for the rest of our careers. I am not stupid enough to think they won’t ever catch on. But I would prefer to delay that inevitability for as long as possible. It has nothing to do with how I...Nothing to do with you. Do you understand?”

Neil gave a hesitant nod. With that, Andrew leaned in, close enough that Neil could feel his breath against his lips.

“This is about them. Not you. And it shouldn’t be. They have no place here. You do.”

Neil started to smile, but the movement was cut off by the feeling of Andrew’s lips on his, crushing the air out of his lungs and distracting him completely from whatever half-assed argument he had been forming. Deep down he knew Andrew was right. And if he was honest, he didn’t want to lose any part of this life they’d fought for, no matter how small. Their midnight trips to the grocery store or the casual touches they’d worked up to or being able to come home every night to their shared apartment and their cats. This was theirs, no one else's. The Foxes had thought they were nothing but a hookup for months after they found out. They didn’t owe their coach or their team any more truth than they owed their family.

And so Neil leaned into Andrew, and allowed himself to forget. What he had here was far more important.

______

Neil could honestly say that he had expected it to be harder. They’d already been sharing a room for away games per their request, and now at least they didn’t have to worry about leaving together for Andrew’s car after practice.

It seemed the whole team had been sworn to secrecy. Neil had known that once one person knew, the whole team would. It takes a lot for something to not spread between a group of people that work together, play together, and at times live and travel together. But apparently Jackson had called a team meeting without them, something that made Neil uncomfortable on principle, because nothing came out in the press. She must’ve threatened them with something pretty severe, since no one even approached them about it, and the worst they got were some second looks. 

That was until Julia grabbed Neil’s shoulder after practice one day. She opened her mouth before seeming to stop and reconsider. Whatever she’d been intending on saying died on her lips, and she just heaved a sigh.

“Listen, as long as you’re happy, I’m happy.”

Neil gave her a confused look. “Is this your way of telling me you’re not a homophobe? Because, if so, it could use some work. It’s not coming across great.”

She blinked. “What? No! Neil, I’m bisexual. You know that right?”

He frowned. “Why would I know that?”

She gave him a stunned look. “Neil, I’ve told you stories about ex-girlfriends of mine. You’ve met my husband!”

He blinked. “Oh. Sorry. I remember him, I just tend to block out some of the rest of it.”

She rubbed her forehead exasperatedly. “I’m just trying to tell you that if things break bad between you two, I’m on your side.”

His frown deepened. “You shouldn’t be. You’re captain. And Andrew’s been here longer than I have, so shouldn’t you be on his side?”

She groaned. “Jesus, Neil. I’m your friend, team or not, and I’m trying to tell you I care about you and I’ll, you know, kick his ass or something if he hurts you.”

That forced a laugh out of Neil. Julia smiled, looking relieved. She didn’t seem to understand that Neil was more laughing at the idea of her going toe to toe with Andrew than anything else. He grinned. “Thanks Jay. I appreciate it.”

She gave him a playful shove. “Go shower, you stink.”

When Neil brought up the conversation to Andrew later that night, he just shrugged. He’d never really cared about any of their opinions anyways. Anyone whose thoughts on the matter he gave a damn about already knew, not that he’d admit he cared about any of them either. Neil, on the other hand, was holding it together mostly because no one on the court seemed to be treating him any differently. That was something at least.

And if they got some wolf whistles when they went up to their room for away games and a few more dirty jokes directed their way hanging out after practice, at least no one was crossing any lines they couldn’t come back from.

_______

Apparently it was too good to last though. About two months after the team found out, the press caught wind of something. Jackson was furious, ready to rain down hell on one of her players for ratting them out, but it turned out that it had been someone else. The story came out along with a photo of the two of them in the freezer section of their local grocery store, Andrew leaning casually against the shopping cart, Neil’s arms wrapped around his waist, head clearly visible poking over Andrew’s left shoulder despite his giant hoodie.

That day, Jackson sat the two of them down.

“I’m sorry guys, it wasn’t anyone on our end.” She threw a copy of the magazine down the table. “Looks like it was some random willing to sell photos to the press.”

Neil, sitting in a chair in her office next to Andrew, just shrugged.

“Yeah, this was never gonna fly for long. I’m honestly just surprised it took this long.”

Andrew finally looked up, eyes bored. “What now?”

Jackson sighed. “Well, I’ve been on calls with your publicists all day, and they seem to think you should issue a statement.”

Neil frowned. “Like, write something?”

Jackson nodded. “Yeah. The Coyotes are going to put something out later today saying we’re fully behind you and asking for your privacy, yadda yadda yadda. I’d say you guys have about twenty-four hours to throw something together yourself before the vultures start circling big time.”

Andrew just crossed his legs. “I do not have anything to tell them.”

Neil looked over at him, unsurprised. “I do. Would you mind if I said something?”

Andrew waved a hand. “Whatever.”

Jackson cringed. “Um, well Neil, I’m not sure you have the best history with the press, so maybe-”

He cut her off. “Fine. I’ll let my publicist set up a press conference, and they can handle all of it. Happy?”

Their coach finally relented, shoulders dropping. “Okay. But they have to sign off on it first.”

Neil grinned in a way that made Jackson distinctly uneasy. “Of course.”

______

Two days later, Neil stood alone in front of a sea of reporters, his publicist warily hanging out on the sidelines. He’d had to put some serious pressure on her to set this up. He’d never been the best writer, so he told her that he’d probably put things better if he were allowed to talk to the press directly. She had firmly disagreed, but after reminding her that he could just do this himself by starting a livestream whenever he wanted, she’d finally relented, arranging this set up. There were cameras flashing, and a low level chatter that increased dramatically when Neil stepped out.

“Hey guys. How’s it going? I could’ve sworn I saw some of you camped out in front of my apartment building earlier. Quick turn around, huh?” He turned to his publicist, grin turning sharp. “Yeah, Kayla, could we get those three out of here? Red shirt, blue glasses, and, uh, green tie, right there. Thanks.”

She quickly went to work, pointing them out to security, and the room seemed to tense as the three reporters were escorted out of the room.

Neil turned back to address the crowd. “Great, now that’s settled. By the way, you’ll notice that guy who broke the story a few days ago wasn’t invited either. Actually, Coach Jackson has had his press pass revoked and no one from his company will ever be invited back to our press events. So, by all means, someone try that shit again. It won’t end well for you.”

The silence in the room echoed. Even the camera flashes stilled for a moment, before resuming their frenzy.

“Excellent,” Neil continued, “Any questions?”

Hands shot up around the room. He pointed to a woman at random.

“Neil, quick question, what is the nature of your relationship with Andrew Minyard?”

“We’re mortal enemies locked in an eternal blood feud. That’s why I live with him and go to buy ice cream with him at two in the morning. Next.”

A man stepped forwards. “How long have you two been together?”

Neil did a quick count on his fingers. “Four days as of tomorrow. Who else?”

Another woman was quick to jump on the opportunity.

“Neil, what’s it like being the first openly gay player in professional exy?”

Neil paused at that. He’d been having fun messing with them, but this seemed a bit too serious to joke about. He frowned at her. “I’m not the first openly gay player in professional exy, Andrew is. At least get something right. I’m the first openly demi player in professional exy. And Google that shit before you print something stupid and wrong. Honestly, I’m getting a bit tired of the questions, so I’ll just wrap this up real quick.

He casually pulled a chain from under his shirt, on which dangled a plain gold band. The cameras started flashing more quickly.

“Andrew and I have been married for going on two years now. We’ve been together for six. Everyone close to us knows already, this isn’t coming out of nowhere, and we didn’t tell the public because, believe it or not, some members of the press, the public, and the Coyote’s fan base are wildly homophobic, and honestly, we don’t really want to totally blow up the regular life we have going here. We’re not ‘brave,’ we’re not your new ‘power couple,’ we’re two people who happen to play a competitive sport together who are also in a relationship. Don’t bother us, don’t stake out our practices or our neighborhood or our apartment. We don’t take that shit lying down, and Andrew has a law degree, so depending on how badly you fuck up our fairly simple requests, he could either send you to hospital or to jail. And he’s not the dangerous one in the relationship. So run this story for the next month or so like we all know you’re going to, and then shut the fuck up. It didn’t make a difference before you knew, and we’ve been together since college, so it’s been like this ever since people started reporting on us. If this proves anything, it’s that our relationship has no influence on our playing or anything that you all as sports reporters should care about. So stay in your lane, and don’t bother us. Thanks, now get out.”

Neil walked off stage calmly as he watched his publicist poorly conceal a meltdown behind him. He pushed through the double doors back into the interior of the stadium to see Coach Jackson leaning against the wall, looking a mix between disappointed, shocked, and vaguely impressed.

“Bye Coach,” he called, “see you Monday.”

He walked out the exit without looking back, sliding neatly into the passenger seat of Andrew’s car, which was idling by the curb.

Andrew gave him a neutral look.

Neil leaned his seat back, letting out a heavy sigh. “Home? I could use another massage.”

Andrew just turned his eyes back to the road, pressing the gas hard enough that Neil got jostled around in his seat.

“Ow! Alright, that’s a no. Got it.”

After a few minutes, he turned back. “Drew. I’ll make mac and cheese,” he offered up hesitantly.

Andrew pointedly avoiding looking over at him. “Anyone can make mac and cheese. We buy the boxed crap.”

Neil smiled. “Yeah, but you won’t have to get up off the couch to do it. And I'll add extra cheese.”

His eyes narrowed. “Fine.”

Neil turned his smug impression towards the window, avoiding invoking anymore of Andrew’s wrath. “Great.”

______

Monday went interestingly. The team already knew what Neil was like with the press, and since they’d already heard about Andrew and Neil from Warner, it could’ve gone worse.

Essentially, they stepped out onto the court to see the team waiting for them. Or at least, it seemed like they were waiting for them from a distance. It turned out they were all facing Jackson, who looked like she had a headache forming, and seemed to be fielding questions.

Julia was standing in the front, and she called over when she saw them.

“Yo, Josten! What the fuck? Six years? That’s...that’s...ages dude!”

Marine, a backliner, piped up from behind her. “Yeah, plus Coach, you said they were dating. And Warner said they were hooking up. Fucking married! That had to have been on the record somewhere.”

Jackson huffed. “Yeah, okay we fucked up here. But I asked Andrew and he didn’t tell me any of this.”

Neil frowned from his place to the side. “No, you didn’t. You told him that you knew we were hooking up, and that you’d let us be as long as we were just dating casually. What makes you think that we want you getting involved in our business? Plus, you didn’t ask him shit! You just listened to Warner and assumed, God knows why, that we couldn’t possibly be in a committed relationship. Do you listen to everything the press says or only to the self-serving snitches in your team?”  
Jackson had to grace to look somewhat ashamed. “I’m sorry, it’s just, Andrew has been notoriously single for years, and there’s been plenty of talk about how he-”

Neil interrupted her quickly. “Yeah, talk. There’s also been talk about how women can’t coach pro-exy too, and we both know that’s bullshit. Maybe you should listen less to talk and more to your players. You know, the ones who aren’t busy ratting each other out.”

She sighed. “You’re right.” She turned back to face her players. “Okay everyone. I owe Neil and Andrew an apology. So does Warner. Actually, I think all of us do. So, I expect each of you to get on that shit immediately. I’ll start. I’m sorry for assuming. It was a shitty thing to do. For what it’s worth, I’m happy for both of you. You’re my players, and your happiness is important to me.”

Julia started to open her mouth to continue the apologies, but Jackson cut her off.

“Nope, take care of that on your own time. For now, everyone give me three laps. Josten, Minyard, stretch out. Or are you both Minyard? Or both Josten? I should’ve asked,” she said, wincing.  
Neil rolled his eyes. “Just leave it. It would be too confusing for practice.”

Andrew spoke for the first time all practice, shrugging his shoulders. “We hyphenated,” he deadpanned.

Jackson just blinked, turning back to the rest of the team. “I said laps. Why don’t I see any running.” Just as they took off, she grabbed Warner by the shoulder pad. “By the way Jake. I meant to tell you, I don’t see you having much of a future here in Phoenix. We don’t take too kindly to teammates trying to put each other down to get on top. Maybe you should start to look around for other offers. Good luck with that. Laps. Now.”

His face paled rapidly, and he quickly stumbled off to take his laps, quietly fuming.

Neil suppressed a grin. “Cheers, Coach.”

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. You better not go transferring next season or some shit now that we’ve finally gotten a read on you two. The whole team has been trying to figure out your deal all year.”

At that, Neil let out a laugh. “Yeah, keep trying. We’ll be here.”

He slung his racquet over his shoulders, strolling over to the bench to stretch, Andrew following behind him.

Neil flashed him a grin. “Looks like that’s settled.”

Andrew raised an eyebrow.

“What?” Neil asked.

Andrew snorted. “Clearly you haven’t checked your messages.”

Neil groaned. “Oh god damn it. Kevin?”

“Everyone. So yes, Kevin.”

Neil sighed. “That sounds about right. Whatever. We’ll deal with it.” He smiled. “We always do.”

______

37 Unread Messages for Neil Josten

From Matt Boyd: neil!!! dude!1!!1 how do u frame a video, asking for a friend

From Nicky Hemmick: !!!!!!!!!

From Renee Walker: Congratulations Neil. I told Andrew that ring was the right choice ;)

From David Wymack: and for the thousandth time this year i find myself extremely glad you and your sorry asses aren’t my responsibility anymore. now cut it out before you give poor kayla a stroke. there’s no way you’re paying her enough.

From Kevin Day: fuck  
From Kevin Day: fuck neil!  
From Kevin Day: 1 missed call  
From Kevin Day: okay actually there are a couple of stations that are viewing this as alright  
From Kevin Day: maybe we can use this to our advantage. did you know nike does a pride campaign every year  
From Kevin Day: just don’t pull this kind of shit ever again  
From Kevin Day: neil answer me

29 Unread Messages for Andrew Minyard

From Kevin Day: that’s officially my half of our deal complete, in case you were in any doubt

From Bee: I’m happy for you.

**Author's Note:**

> Also, just in case someone spotted it, in hospital is a british expression so i figure neil would probably use it. Here's hoping Andrew isn't ooc, since i love writing his and neil's dialogue. Am I putting off working on my wip? Possibly. Someone stop me. One shots just get a lot more instant feedback and like most fanfic writers i feed off that shit soooo...
> 
> I'm on tumblr at back2beesness, come say hi or send a request, i might just write it.
> 
> edit: also the title is from a panic! song. it just fit well.


End file.
